Fatherly Lessons: Son of the Late Stephen R. Covey Talks Dad, Business at USU

The late Stephen R. Covey, a former full professor at Utah State University and worldwide best-selling author, always thought his 80th birthday would be a important occasion.

His son, Stephen M.R. Covey, told students, faculty and members of the public in a lecture on campus Wednesday that his father — who would have turned 80 that day — used to tell people at business seminars to imagine their own 80th birthday.

“He would say, ‘You’re there; your family, your work associates, community associates and friends are there, and they’re all paying tribute to you,’” M.R. Covey said during a “Special Commemorative Dean’s Convocation” in a packed lecture hall at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business. “’What is it you would like them to say? Write it down, put it in the form of a mission statement.’ It’s not just something he did once; it lives on.”